Valvoline
Homestead Preview
Within hours of the checkered flag falling on the 2002
Nascar Winston Cup season at Homestead-Miami Speedway this
Sunday, Johnny Benson and his Valvoline teammates will be
back at the 1.5-mile oval Monday morning testing their new
2003 Pontiac Grand Prix.
Nascar this weekend reduced the allotted tests from seven in
2002 to five in 2003. The Monday and Tuesday test in Miami
is a Nascar mandated test therefore it won’t count as one of
the five tests the team is permitted at a Winston Cup track
in 2003.
Johnny Benson On Reduction From Seven To Five Tests in
2003:
"Now that we have five tests you are going to see teams
trying to find different ways around this rule. They are
going to go do more Busch races; they are also going to go
to tracks where it won’t count as a test, so there will be
ways around it. If it gives the crew guys in this sport a
break then I’m all for it but if it just changes the place
where we are testing then I don’t know how much of an impact
it will make. But, Nascar is trying to do the right thing
and I will support them whenever they are trying to help the
crew guys."
Crew Chief James Ince On Reduction From Seven to Five
Tests In 2003:
"I understand why they did it but I’m kind of disappointed
they are reducing the number of tests in 2003. Our schedules
are busy and all that, but when you have new race cars you
need as many tests as you can get. This is kind of a strange
year for this to be happening. If we are going to cut down
the tests I wish we would cut all of them out and just be
done with it. You are going to see the big teams going to
Kentucky, Nashville and other tracks like that even more in
2003 since those tracks don’t count as one of your five
tests."
Ince On The Off Season:
"It all runs together now. It isn’t like it used to be that
you could take a couple weeks off after the season to rest
and then move forward. It’s a never-ending endeavor now. We
had such a busy off-season last year that I went to Daytona
tired. I felt like we never had any time off and that it was
just a continuation of the year before. This season I plan
to make sure we get some time off and are well rested when
we get to Daytona. Our off season is about three weeks now.
And, that’s tough on everybody. We know auto racing is a
tough business and a tough sport. You understand when you go
in to it that it’s going
to take that kind of commitment. That’s why these salaries
are going up. The owners understand how demanding these jobs
are."
Ince On The 2003 Pontiac:
"We actually started thinking and working on the 2003
program in February of 2001 at Daytona. Pontiac came to us
and told us what they wanted us to do with a new car and how
they wanted us to participate in their program. Since then
we have been working for the 2003 season. Yeah it is a new
car to the fans, but to us it is kind of an old friend
already. I feel really good about the 2003 car. But you
never really know what you have until you get them all in a
pile and start racing. The thing I feel the best about is
that for the first time in the history of the sport
everybody is having to cut up a car. It isn’t a deal where
the Fords are getting something new or the Chevrolets are
something new. With the roof location rule and new templates
this will be the most even playing field we have ever had.
I’m really looking forward to it."
Benson Record at Homestead
Year S F
2001 25 20
2000 14 30
1999 39 35
THE RACE: Ford 400
Winston Cup Race #36 of 36 for the 2002 Winston Cup season
Race: Sunday, November 17, 2002 in Homestead, FL
TV: NBC - 1:00pm/et
Race re-air: TNT on Tues, Nov 19th at 2:00am/et; Speed
Channel on Wed, Nov
20th, 8:00pm/et; Thurs, Nov 21st, 1:00am/et and again at
12:00noon/et.
Pre-Race Show: NBC - 12:00noon/et - Hosted by Bill Weber
Announcers: Allen Bestwick, Benny Parsons and Wally
Dallenbach
Pit Reporters: Bill Weber, Matt Yocum, Marty Snider, Dave
Burns
Purse/Race Awards: $4,215,766 (last year $3,592,785)
2001 Race Winner: Bill Elliott, 117.449mph, started 1st
Race Record: Tony Stewart, Nov 1999, 140.335mph
Track/Race Length: 1.5 mile oval, 267 laps, 400.5 miles
Pit Road Speed: 45mph
Practice
Practice: Friday, November 15th, 9:45 - 11:45am/et;
Saturday, November 16th, 10:00 - 10:45am/et.
Happy Hour Practice: Saturday, November 16th, 11:45am -
12:30pm/et on TV-Speed Channel.
Qualifying
Qualifying Draw: Friday, November 15th, 8:45am/et
Qualifying: 2 laps for positions 1-36, Friday, November 15th
at 1:05pm/et,
TV-Speed Channel and live via MRN Radio
Track/Event Qualifying Record: Steve Park, Nov 2000,
156.440mph
Last Year's Pole Sitter: Bill Elliott, 155.226, finished
1st.
Track Specs:
Degree of Banking: Turns: 6 degrees
Straightaways: Length: 1,760 feet, Width: 60 feet, Banking:
3 degrees
Grandstand Seating: 72,000
#10 Valvoline Pontiac Team Television Information
Pit Contact: James Ince or Drew Brown
Owner: Valvoline/MB2 Motorsports (Tom Beard, Nelson Bowers,
Read Morton)
Crew Chief/Car Chief: James Ince
Engine Builder: Hendrick Motorsports
Spotter (Race Day) Brian Dantinne
Spotter (Practice Only) Russell Hoekwater
Engine Tuner: Devin Barbee
Over The Wall Pit Crew
Gas Man: Jimmy Watts
Front Tire Changer: Bobby Burrell
Front Tire Carrier: David Smith Tilley
Catch Can: Steve Mann
Jackman: Rob Jones
Rear Tire Changer: Greg Burkhart
Rear Tire Carrier: Shane Cooke
Other Crew Members
Truck Driver: Gale (Bandit) Wilson
Mechanic: Jerry Hess
Mechanic: David Baum
Shocks: Mike Cluka
Tires: Jeff Johnson
Engineer: Tim Turner
Computers & Gas Runner: John Hayes
Scorer: Terry Lane
Pit Stop Coach: Gary Smith
PR Rep: Drew Brown
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June 20, 2008
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Hall of Fame
John Benson Sr.
Harry Obie
Bob Knight
Gail Cobb
Ralph Baker
Jimmy Meyer
The Mysliwiec's
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2008
Craftsman Truck Schedule
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02/15 |
Daytona |
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02/23 |
California |
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03/07 |
Atlanta |
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03/29 |
Martinsville |
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04/26 |
Kansas |
|
05/16 |
Lowes |
|
05/24 |
Mansfield |
|
05/30 |
Dover |
|
06/06 |
Texas |
|
06/14 |
MIS |
|
06/20 |
Milwaukee |
|
06/28 |
Memphis |
|
07/19 |
Kentucky |
|
07/25 |
Indy |
|
08/09 |
Nashville |
|
08/20 |
Bristol |
|
09/06 |
Gateway |
|
09/13 |
Loudon |
|
09/20 |
Las Vegas |
|
10/04 |
Talladega |
|
10/18 |
Martinsville |
|
10/25 |
Atlanta |
|
10/31 |
Texas |
|
11/07 |
Phoenix |
|
11/14 |
Homestead |
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2008
Nationwide
Schedule |
|
02/16 |
Daytona |
|
02/23 |
California |
|
03/01 |
Las Vegas |
|
03/08 |
Atlanta |
|
03/15 |
Bristol |
|
03/22 |
Nashville |
|
04/05 |
Texas |
|
04/11 |
Phoenix |
|
04/20 |
Mexico |
|
04/26 |
Talladega |
|
05/02 |
Richmond |
|
05/09 |
Darlington |
|
05/24 |
Lowes |
|
05/31 |
Dover |
|
06/07 |
Nashville |
|
06/14 |
Kentucky |
|
06/21 |
Milwaukee |
|
06/28 |
New Hampshire |
|
07/04 |
Daytona |
|
07/11 |
Chicago |
|
07/19 |
Gateway |
|
07/26 |
Indy |
|
08/02 |
Montreal |
|
08/09 |
Watkins Glen |
|
08/16 |
Michigan |
|
08/22 |
Bristol |
|
08/30 |
California |
|
09/05 |
Richmond |
|
09/20 |
Dover |
|
09/27 |
Kansas |
|
10/10 |
Lowes |
|
10/25 |
Memphis |
|
11/01 |
Texas |
|
11/08 |
Phoenix |
|
11/15 |
Miami |
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|
2008
Sprint Cup
Schedule |
|
02/17 |
Daytona |
|
02/24 |
California |
|
03/02 |
Las Vegas |
|
03/09 |
Atlanta |
|
03/16 |
Bristol |
|
03/30 |
Martinsville |
|
04/06 |
Texas |
|
04/12 |
Phoenix |
|
04/27 |
Talladega |
|
05/03 |
Richmond |
|
05/10 |
Darlington |
|
05/25 |
Lowes |
|
06/01 |
Dover |
|
06/08 |
Pocono |
|
06/15 |
MIS |
|
06/22 |
Sonoma |
|
06/29 |
New Hampshire |
|
07/05 |
Daytona |
|
07/12 |
Chicago |
|
07/27 |
Indy |
|
08/03 |
Pocono |
|
08/10 |
Watkins Glen |
|
08/17 |
MIS |
|
08/23 |
Bristol |
|
08/31 |
California |
|
09/06 |
Richmond |
|
09/14 |
Loudon |
|
09/21 |
Lowes |
|
09/28 |
Kansas |
|
10/05 |
Talladega |
|
10/11 |
Lowes |
|
10/19 |
Martinsville |
|
10/26 |
Atlanta |
|
11/02 |
Texas |
|
11/09 |
Phoenix |
|
11/16 |
Miami |
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2008
JB's Berlin
Schedule |
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August 2nd |
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September 27th |
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